Country

United States

Type

Full Time

Program (Division)

CHAI Leadership

The Clinton Health Access Initiative, Inc. (CHAI) is a global health organization committed to our mission of saving lives and reducing the burden of disease in low-and middle-income countries. We work at the invitation of governments to support them and the private sector to create and sustain high-quality health systems.

CHAI was founded in 2002 in response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, with the goal of dramatically reducing the price of life-saving drugs and increasing access to these medicines in the countries with the highest burden of the disease. Over the following two decades, CHAI has expanded its focus. Today, along with HIV, we work in conjunction with our partners to prevent and treat infectious diseases such as COVID-19, malaria, tuberculosis, and hepatitis. Our work has also expanded into cancer, diabetes, hypertension, and other non-communicable diseases, and we work to accelerate the rollout of lifesaving vaccines, reduce maternal and child mortality, combat chronic malnutrition, and increase access to assistive technology. We are investing in horizontal approaches to strengthen health systems through programs in human resources for health, digital health, and health financing. With each new and innovative program, our strategy is grounded in maximizing sustainable impact at scale, ensuring that governments lead the solutions, that programs are designed to scale nationally, and learnings are shared globally.

At CHAI, our people are our greatest asset, and none of this work would be possible without their talent, time, dedication, and passion for our mission and values. We are a highly diverse team of enthusiastic individuals across 40 countries with a broad range of skill sets and life experiences. CHAI is deeply grounded in the countries we work in, with the majority of our staff based in program countries. Learn more about our exciting work: http://www.clintonhealthaccess.org

CHAI is an Equal Opportunity Employer, and is committed to providing an environment of fairness, and mutual respect where all applicants have access to equal employment opportunities. CHAI values diversity and inclusion, and recognizes that our mission is best advanced by the leadership and contributions of people with diverse experience, backgrounds, and culture.

Team Overview

The international development landscape has changed dramatically since the beginning of 2025, with the global health community now having to achieve results with significantly fewer resources. CHAI is uniquely positioned to elevate national voices, shape debates from behind the scenes, and leverage our deep implementation experience to ensure that advocacy on critical global health issues is grounded in practical learnings from sustained, hands-on engagement.

To help shape and advocate for this next phase of global health, CHAI is establishing a Policy, Advocacy, and Communications (PAC) function. This role has been created to design, lead, and grow the function from inception, positioning CHAI as a trusted voice and catalyst for change. The Head of PAC will drive CHAI’s global vision to remove systems barriers, shape and influence policies in global health, and enhance CHAI’s visibility as a catalytic thought leader and trusted partner to key stakeholders including donors, media, and partners across the global health ecosystem.

CHAI’s new PAC team will focus on the following areas:

• Policy: Translate evidence to influence critical global policymakers to accelerate health access and systems strengthening, anchored in CHAI’s on-the-ground implementation experience.
• Advocacy: Design and execute targeted advocacy strategies to influence key decision-makers at the national, regional, and global levels, securing durable policy change. Cultivate and leverage champions and influencers to amplify impact and build momentum for CHAI’s priorities.
• Communications: CHAI’s Global Communications team will join this newly created function, which currently serves as the central hub for organizational communications. In addition to supporting teams across the organization to develop and carry out external and internal communications strategies, the new PAC team will manage CHAI’s brand and voice globally—developing messaging, identifying key audiences, working with the media, disseminating reports, managing external digital platforms (including CHAI’s website and social media), and collaborating with partners and donors on communications efforts.

Position Overview

CHAI is seeking an experienced, visionary senior leader to serve as Head of Policy, Advocacy, and Communications (PAC), establishing and leading a new function to drive impact through sector influence across CHAI’s portfolio of 20+ global programs in 35+ countries. The Head of PAC will work closely with senior leadership, country teams, and global program teams to develop and execute comprehensive policy, advocacy, and communications strategies for CHAI. They will work closely with the Chief Executive Officer and senior leadership and will oversee the existing Global Communications team while being responsible for establishing and growing a new Policy and Advocacy team.

This individual will be a strategic thinker and persuasive advocate with experience navigating complex global health or humanitarian policy environments. They will have proven networks and the ability to engage senior policymakers and leaders across the international development sector, present data-driven and evidence-based recommendations, and strengthen the organization’s positioning on the global stage. They will also be responsible for building and managing a high-performing team, including hiring additional staff as the PAC function grows, managing departmental budgets, and contributing to organizational decision-making processes.

As part of CHAI Leadership, the Head of PAC will play a critical role in shaping organizational strategy and positioning CHAI for the future. They will grow a high-performing team anchored by a comprehensive PAC strategy. The Head of PAC, like all CHAI leaders, will represent CHAI externally and elevate CHAI’s evidence, innovations, and implementation experience, enabling partnership with governments, foundations, and multilateral institutions to drive system-wide change and achieve impact at scale.

This is a fully remote position, with candidates expected to be based in one of CHAI’s operational countries, including the United States. The position will involve approximately 20 percent international travel.

Policy, Advocacy, and Communications Leadership (40%)

• Work closely with the CEO and senior CHAI leadership, with direct responsibility for both establishing a new Policy & Advocacy function and overseeing CHAI’s existing central Global Communications team.
• Lead the development and execution of a comprehensive PAC strategy that leverages CHAI’s expertise to shape health priorities globally, regionally, and nationally.
• Establish CHAI as a leading voice on critical health policy issues through strategic relationship building and thought leadership.
• Identify and forecast emerging trends in global health and synthesize them into actionable insights, building trusted relationships with decision-makers and proactively shaping policy debates on critical issues.
• Partner with program teams to translate programmatic insights into actionable policy recommendations and communications plans.
• Amplify CHAI’s programmatic impact and sectoral influence by developing and executing targeted policy, advocacy, and communications strategies.
• Oversee CHAI’s central communications portfolio, ensuring consistency of messaging and brand across the organization. Approximately 75% of the role will focus on policy and advocacy, and 25% on organizational communications.
• Manage the Global Communications team, a team of ~2-4 staff that work remotely, with responsibility for recruitment, professional development, and performance management.
• Establish and grow the new Policy and Advocacy team (size to be determined over time) responsible for executing CHAI’s policy and advocacy strategy.
• Develop and manage departmental budgets, and contribute to organizational fundraising and strategic decision-making as part of CHAI’s senior leadership.
• Lead risk management and crisis communications initiatives.

External Engagement and Advocacy (30%)

• Lead engagements with government officials, UN agencies, multilateral institutions, bilateral donors, and other key stakeholders to advance CHAI’s priorities.
• Represent CHAI as senior spokesperson across policy forums, committees, external audiences, and meetings with donors and policymakers globally.
• Cultivate relationships with journalists and media outlets, proactively pitching stories and securing coverage to advance CHAI’s policy, advocacy, and communications goals.
• Develop and execute advocacy strategies for priority policy issues, including power mapping, stakeholder analysis, and targeted initiatives.
• Identify, cultivate, and engage champions and influencers — including government leaders, civil society, and other high-profile voices — to amplify CHAI’s priorities and drive durable policy change.
• Build strategic partnerships and coalitions to advance shared objectives.
• Plan and leverage experts from across CHAI to lead engagement for impactful engagement events, including webinars, press conferences, and other relevant convenings.

Research & Content Development (30%) 

• Analyze and forecast key shifts and moments of opportunity in CHAI’s core domains, and design PAC strategies to maximize influence and impact.
• Create frameworks to assess policy impact and feasibility across different country contexts.
• Amplify CHAI’s thought leadership by spearheading the development, writing, and editing of materials such as annual reports, leadership documents, talking points, press releases, white papers, and technical recommendations.
• Oversee CHAI’s digital communications channels, including website updates, blogs, and social media content, ensuring they reflect organizational priorities and amplify CHAI’s policy, advocacy, and communications goals.
• Provide strategic communications support to CHAI leadership, including briefing memos, speeches, presentations, or op-eds.

• Advanced degree required (Master’s, JD, or equivalent), preferably in public policy, international relations, public health, or related field.
• 15+ years of progressive experience in policy development, advocacy, and communications, with at least 5 years in senior leadership roles.
• Experience managing and building high-performing teams.
• Deep experience and network working with governments, multilateral institutions, and nonprofit partners on health or development policy.
• Demonstrated track record of developing and executing successful policy-shaping that achieved measurable impact.
• Strong understanding of the global health landscape and key technical areas.
• Excellent analytical and strategic thinking skills, with ability to translate complex issues into actionable recommendations.
• Outstanding written and verbal communication skills, including public speaking, media engagement, and briefing senior officials.
• A demonstrated ability to generate high-quality media coverage.
• Ability to navigate a fast-paced environment while balancing multiple priorities, serving diverse internal stakeholders, and effectively prioritizing across several functions.
• Ability to work across cultures and in resource-constrained settings.
• Political acumen and relationship-building skills at senior levels of government and international organizations.

Advantages:

• Experience working in or with low- and middle-income country governments.
• Previous experience working in US Government and/or non-profit environments.
• Established relationships with key stakeholders including donors, UN agencies, and media outlets covering global health, international development, or related fields.
• Professional fluency in additional languages, such as French or Spanish.

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